After missing the playoffs for the first time in eight years, the Rangers head into Friday’s NHL draft with the 9th overall pick before finishing their first round with the 26th and 28th picks.

Hockey drafts can be fickle and players may take a few years to reach their NHL rosters, but No. 9 picks have generally yielded positive results. Save for last year’s pick, Michael Rasmussen, every 9th pick since 1979 has reached the NHL, with only three picks playing in fewer than 50 games.

Brian Leetch

Year: 1986

Team: RANGERS

What did he do: More like what didn’t he do? A familiar face to Rangers fans, Leetch played over 16 seasons in New York, winning the Calder Trophy for best rookie in 1989 and the Norris Trophy for best defenseman in both 1992 and 1997, while appearing in nine All-Star games. Leetch’s greatest accomplishments came in 1994 when he helped lead the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup in 54 years and became the first American to win the Conn Smythe as playoffs MVP. Leetch, who captained the Rangers from 1997-2000, had his No. 2 jersey raised to the Garden rafters in 2008 before being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009.

Cam Neely

Year: 1983

Team: Vancouver Canucks

What did he do: Neely is the only other Hall of Famer drafted 9th overall. After three seasons in Vancouver, he was traded to the Bruins, where he really broke out as a right winger. Neely tallied at least 50 goals in three different seasons and ended his career with 395 goals. He earned the nickname “Bam-Bam Cam” for his heavy hitting and propensity for fighting. After his retirement in 1996, the Bruins retired Neely’s No. 8 jersey in 2004 and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame the following year.

Rod Brind’Amour (Paul Sancya / ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Rod Brind’Amour

Year: 1988

Team: St. Louis Blues

What did he do: Brind’Amour played 20 seasons in the NHL, starting with the Blues before nine seasons with the Flyers, where he posted four 30-goal seasons and reached the All-Star Game once. The Michigan State product eventually ended up in Carolina, where he captained the Hurricanes to a Stanley Cup in 2006, scoring 12 goals in the franchise’s first successful Stanley Cup run. In May, the Hurricanes hired Brind’Amour as their new head coach after serving as an assistant for Carolina since 2011.

Dion Phaneuf

Year: 2003

Team: Calgary Flames

What did he do: With the Flames, Phaneuf reached the All-Star Game in both 2007 and 2008, posting 50-point seasons in both years. Calgary traded the defenseman to Toronto in 2010, quickly becoming a centerpiece of the Maple Leafs’ blue line. Phaneuf made his third All-Star Game in 2012 while playing for the Leafs. After being traded again to both Ottawa and Los Angeles, the 33-year-old is now in the tail end of his career while under contract with the Kings for the next three seasons.

Mikael Granlund

Year: 2010

Team: Minnesota Wild

What did he do: Granlund has established himself as one of the Wild’s most important players over the last two years. He tallied at least 20 goals and 65 points in each of the last two seasons, leading the team in points and assists in 2016-17 with 69 and 43, respectively. The Finnish right-winger figures to be a key part of Minnesota’s long-term plans and was certainly worth the 9th pick the Wild used on him.